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‘Fatally Flawed’: CA Gov. Vetoes Democratic Bill That Would Have Protected Illegals From Fed Immigration Checks

Oct. 1, 2012 10:15am Billy Hallowell

CA Gov. Jerry Brown Vetos Immigration Bill Curbing Deporation Checks| TRUST Act

California Gov. Jerry Brown (Photo Credit: AP)

California Gov. Jerry Brown had a busy weekend, as he acted on over 100 pieces of legislation. Among the provisions he signed into law, Brown banned reparative therapies intended to turn gay youths straight. While this law is certainly controversial, so is one of the bills he vetoed — a measure that would have shielded some illegal immigrants from federal checks on their status.

The bill, which was officially called the TRUST Act and dubbed an “anti-Arizona” effort by supporters, would have prevented local authorities from honoring federal requests for detention of illegals, unless the individuals were charged or convicted of serious or violent felonies, Reuters reports. The Huffington Post provides more details about the measure’s intended purpose:

The TRUST Act, which was originally introduced by state Assemblyman Tom Ammiano, would have limited the state’s law enforcement’s interactions with federal immigration enforcement efforts. It specifically would have restricted California’s cooperation in the Secure Communities program, which relies on local police to hold undocumented immigrants detected upon arrest until Immigration and Customs Enforcement can pick them up.

Critics of Secure Communities, which they refer to as the less-euphemistic “SCOMM,” argue the program hurts local communities by making immigrants fearful of police, by netting low-level and non-criminals, and by clogging jails, at a high cost, with individuals whom police would otherwise let go.

States aren’t actually allowed to leave the program, although they were originally told they would be, and some have attempted to do so. But they can legally ignore requests, called detainers, to hold immigrants for ICE. The TRUST Act would release undocumented immigrants despite requests from ICE if they didn’t meet certain criteria based on their record and the severity of their crime.

The legislation — and the debate as a whole — presents a compelling conundrum. While many may support deporting illegal immigrants, the situation gets complicated, specifically when considering federal-state issues and the power of the U.S. government.

While states were initially told they could opt out of the program, they have not yet been allowed to do so — a potential issue for those who support states’ rights (some politicians, though, have passed restrictions, similar to the TRUST Act that seek to limit the federal government’s powers on the immigration front). Contrary to these issues, removing many of the crimes from the list that would flag illegals for federal scrutiny presents important issues of safety worth consideration.

Photo Credit: AP

If Brown had signed the bill, a decrease in deportation proceedings among illegals would have been, based on the new parameters, potentially evident. While supporters pushed for the TRUST Act, claiming that it would have protected minorities from the racial profiling they believe is at the center of the Arizona immigration law, some wording within the measure led the governor to reject it.

For Brown, it was the narrow portion of the bill that exempt all crimes aside from serious or violent felonies. In qualifying his veto, the governor explained that, while he supports immigration reform, he does not believe in protecting those who have engaged in other crimes — drug and weapons trafficking, child abuse and other similar infractions. As a result, he said that the measure brought before him was “fatally flawed.”

While he had concerns about some of the more serious crimes that would go unchecked under the TRUST Act, he did make a statement about the role of the federal government in cases of less serious crimes. He said, “federal agents shouldn’t try to coerce local law enforcement officers into detaining people who’ve been picked up for minor offenses and pose no reasonable threat to their community.”

Still, Brown couldn’t support the bill in its current form.

“I am unable to sign this bill as written,” Brown said, reiterating his stance on the matter. ”I believe it’s unwise to interfere with a sheriff’s discretion to comply with a detainer issued for people with those kinds of troubling criminal records.”

California Gov. Jerry Brown (Photo Credit: Getty Images)

It didn’t take long for immigrants’ rights groups to decry Brown’s stance on the matter, claiming that he was putting illegals at risk of discrimination and not adequately considering the immigration situation in California.

“By vetoing the TRUST Act Governor Brown has failed California’s immigrant communities, imperiling civil rights and leaving us all less safe,” Pablo Alvarado, executive director of the National Day Laborer Organizing Network, said in a statement about the veto. “The president’s disastrous Secure Communities program is replicating Arizona’s model of immigration enforcement nationally, causing a human rights crisis.”

Reshma Shamasunder, who heads the California Immigrant Policy Center, echoed the same sentiment, claiming that Brown’s veto has “doomed thousands of immigrants.” In addition to domestic violence survivors, Shamasunder laments the fact that minor offenders have been “separated from their loved ones and detained unjustly in local jails.”

One of the central arguments that opponents like Shamasunder wage is that the program is discriminatory against illegals who report crimes — like domestic violence — that have been committed against them. Rather than receiving assistance in these instances, immigrants’ rights workers claim that some illegals are punished unjustly.

Despite what detractors might claim is anti-immigrant sentiment on the part of Brown, the governor is also receiving praise after he signed a separate bill that will allow hundreds of thousands of young illegals the opportunity to get driver’s licenses. If these individuals qualify for President Barack Obama’s new federal work permit program, then they will be able to obtain the documentation needed for the licenses.

“Gov. Brown believes the federal government should pursue comprehensive immigration reform with a pathway to citizenship,” said Brown’s spokesman Gil Duran, according to The Los Angeles Times. “President Obama has recognized the unique status of these students, and making them eligible to apply for driver’s licenses is an obvious next step.”

As TheBlaze has previously reported, under the new Obama administration policy, eligible applicants must have arrived in the United States before their 16th birthday, be 30 years old or younger, lived in the U.S. for at least five years and be in school, graduated or served in the military. They must not have been convicted of a felony, three misdemeanors or one “significant” misdemeanor such as driving under the influence or gun or sex charges, according to the Associated Press.

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Comments (27)

MetalPatriot
Posted on October 2, 2012 at 8:59pm
By vetoing the TRUST Act Governor Brown has failed California’s immigrant communities, imperiling civil rights and leaving us all less safe,”

[NO! The drug trafficking and 2nd/3rd generation gang members are who is making you less safe. But, they have a CIVIL RIGHT to make the evil, greedy U.S.A. into Central & South America, South Africa, South Asia....]
—————————————————
“The president‘s disastrous Secure Communities program is replicating Arizona’s model of immigration enforcement nationally, causing a human rights crisis.”

[OH NO! Immigration enforcement nationally! American can't do that to US! We DESERVE to benefit from your evil,greedy country!]
—————————————————
veto has “doomed thousands of immigrants.” In addition to domestic violence survivors, Shamasunder laments the fact that minor offenders have been “separated from their loved ones and detained unjustly in local jails.”

[REALLY? Minor offenders is different than offenders who are minors. You CAN'T put US in jail! We DESERVE to commit crimes in your evil, greedy country! It's our CIVIL RIGHT!]

———-
Waiting to find out what legislation Brown passed that is actually damaging to natural born or naturalized citizens. Anti-guns, anti-business, anti-everything sane.

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NachtundNebel
Posted on October 2, 2012 at 1:33pm
Have all politicians in “The Golden State” (Barf) become anti-American POSes? I would love to see California become an independent nation. It would immediately turn into Greece. many dysfunctional libs will say California would do well. Using Somalia as a baseline, perhaps it would. Sonn, all the productive people in the state will have moved, and only the Ugimmes will be left.

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dmerwin
Posted on October 1, 2012 at 10:29pm
Only because He doesn’t want a Supreme Court overturn.

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Mary M. Tebbe
Posted on October 1, 2012 at 10:10pm
Illegal means that you are here unlawfully. You need to be deported…end of story. But the shadow government of Bilderbergs and One World Order persons want open borders to destroy the America that we know. The promise of “stuff” in place of freedom brings minorities and ensures democratic votes.
We are an ancient Israelite people: East Manasseh the man-of-war and West Manasseh the agriculturist. We were the last Israelite tribe to come to our promised land, found in the blessing of Joseph and his two sons Manasseh (USA) and Ephraim (Great Britain). We were not a melting pot. Instead, we came up out of our brother tribes from Europe and Scandinavia. OUT OF MANY CAME ONE. Out of our brother tribes, and out of the countries where our ancestors were enslaved, we came here to begin to build the single greatest nation that the world would ever know. Now it is poised to be destroyed by our enemies that traveled through the pages of history with us, and seek to destroy us. I call these enemies the Assyrian/Goths that took us into slavery in the first place when the Northern Kingdom of Israel was taken into captivity to Assyria. History has been destroyed, distorted, and rewritten so we can no longer easily identify who we once were, and who I say we are. Satan is fighting for control of this world in his last gasp before Jesus comes. Satan covets what belongs to God. Satan hates God’s created, and God’s creation.

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ronin_6
Posted on October 1, 2012 at 3:36pm
Werecalled Gray Davis for less than this. What has become of the Golden State?
Its simply to big. In needs to be broken into 3 states. There are efforts(though not very big to do this now) check out the State of Jefferson or the article about the Cali legislature that wants to break it up.
Now there is a great idea. Some of these Western States are just to big to accurately represent.

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cantstandlibs
Posted on October 1, 2012 at 2:35pm
Only a progressive law can supercede a federal law. And only a progressive law can supercede the constitution. What don’t we get about that? One of my “tenets of progressivism.” Look for my book in, oh, I don’t know, 3 years. :-)

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thegreatcarnac
Posted on October 1, 2012 at 1:05pm
What is wrong with California? Besides moonbeam, who really runs this nuthouse? Who votes for these democrats that do nothing but ruin the state? I have been to California several times. It is a pretty state in places where the mexican illegals haven’t turned it into Mexico. However, I thank God every day I do not live there. I have been enough times to know it is run by madmen liberals. California is to be avoided. If you are sensible or white, do not ever move there.

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cgull
Posted on October 1, 2012 at 11:55am
Keyword = Illegal

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- Snowleopard {gallery of cat folks}
  Posted on October 1, 2012 at 12:56pm
  Indeed, and now the CA legislator is likely to overide his veto.
  
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lizaz
Posted on October 1, 2012 at 11:32am
Illegal aliens are ILLEGAL…..no laws should be passed which diminishes this status of ILLEGAL!!! There is no other criteria….they are not citizens of this country and need to GO HOME and begin the process legally. We know that many of them don’t want to be citizens of this country…they simply want to use us to make money they send back to Mexico…use the IRS with their taxpayer ID numbers to claim child tax credits…use our medical system for free, etc. ILLEGAL ALIENS should receive no U.S. citizen benefits, period!!!

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awalan
Posted on October 1, 2012 at 11:29am
I’d like see a little more compassion from the comments on this article for those in the IIlegal Immigrant Community.
Those of us in the Illegal Bank Withdrawal Community are in the same boat; we committed a minor infraction of a complicated legal code, a technicality really, and only want to be left alone to become productive members of society without the cruel insistence that ‘The Letter of the Law’ be followed .
Where is your sense of compassion, we have families that would suffer great hardship if you can’t look beyond your right-wing bigotry and allow us to continue to live our ordinary lives.

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- RoguePO
  Posted on October 1, 2012 at 12:34pm
  Any other country and you’d be found, jailed, and never be seen again.
  
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woodyee
Posted on October 1, 2012 at 11:22am
C’mon, Billy! WTF? “Brown banned reparative therapies intended to turn gay youths straight.”

You know dang well this is nothing more than lending psychological/psychiatric assistance to gays, like there used to be before the ill decision of the APA in the 70′s. But by writing it the way you did, you make it sound like they’re on an impossible quest; NO one can predict the outcome of psychological/psychiatric treatment, like they often can with medicine.

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Cavallo
Posted on October 1, 2012 at 11:17am
Might have been a good precedent.. the states could then start passing all kinds of non-enforcement laws, or laws that would equate to being non-enforcement. Imagine passing laws the nullify the efforts of the DEA or ATF and end all cooperation and enforcement from the local level against violations of federal laws. Or how about laws that end local enforcement of all federal statutes? If the feds what to enforce their laws, let them use federal agents to do it. They’d find themselves completely overwhelmed. While likely impractical, and probably in a whole sale sense, wise.. I would love to see more nullification of federal overreach and passive resistance towards federal abuse of authority.

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- woodyee
  Posted on October 1, 2012 at 11:24am
  Amen, Cavallo. I’ve often the thought that the scope of federal power is directly correlated to the abdication of responsibility by State/local authorities.
  
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focusonquality
Posted on October 1, 2012 at 11:01am
this is nothing. i cant wait to see what happens when cali’s vote down the tax inceases. ol’e moonbeam is going to have to make the cuts. the protests will put the chicago protest to shame. they have a bill to limit unions also, if that one goes thru it should be quite a show.

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- getacluepeeps
  Posted on October 1, 2012 at 2:30pm
  I live in Cali, im voting yes on 32, yes on gmo labeling and im voting for Dianne dingle dorf feinsteins opponent Elizabeth Emken, then the next day I move to Idaho!!! With Moonbeam at the helm I think cali is still gonna go down the toilet at lightening speed.. :) and your right the doo doo is gonna hit the fan after the elections. THIS PLACE SUCKS!!!
  
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bikerdogred1
Posted on October 1, 2012 at 10:54am
Moonbeam,I hope you are going to get them bank loans backed by California,so they can buy a car or house and while you are at it how about giving everybody 2ibs. of weed for xmas,I think that would be nice.

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Inlightofthings
Posted on October 1, 2012 at 10:39am
There can be no such thing as “immigrant communities” as defined. There can only be concentrated groups of un-convcited felons.

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LaBelle
Posted on October 1, 2012 at 10:39am
These politicians on the left are treasonous..People wake up and vote these people out!

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- drattastic
  Posted on October 1, 2012 at 10:57am
  No they’ll just flee Cal.and what they have done to it ,then move to your state and and start voting democrat there too.
  
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Disgusted_in_CT
Posted on October 1, 2012 at 10:29am
What part of Illegal alien don’t you get?
They broke the law to enter this country and no matter what should be deported back.
Now you want to forgive them for minor crimes!
I swear progress liberals have a brain disease that makes them incapable of thinking clearly.

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SquidVetOhio
Posted on October 1, 2012 at 10:29am
Why anyone would even consider living in that cesspool called California is beyond me.

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- jeffile
  Posted on October 1, 2012 at 12:21pm
  Yes, it’s a cesspool but that is because turds like you keep being flushed into our midst.
  
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- Homeschoolmama
  Posted on October 1, 2012 at 1:11pm
  Only 3 reasons I live here, in order of importance- Family, Mountains, Beach. If our family weren’t here we wouldn’t be either. My husband was in the military for 10 years so we’ve lived other places and he talks about leaving all the time but for now I want to stay close to our family. Beside, the more conservatives in CA the better the chance we can turn this state around.
  
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Diablo4965
Posted on October 1, 2012 at 10:21am
Blaze get the headline right, It’s Democrat Bill not Democratic Bill!

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- kaydeebeau
  Posted on October 1, 2012 at 11:35am
  I think it should read Democrat Bull…..
  
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